


Beginnings

by kmoaton



Category: Eureka
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-02-12
Updated: 2012-02-12
Packaged: 2017-10-31 00:59:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/338160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kmoaton/pseuds/kmoaton
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt: "He doesn't notice it until the 3rd time they have sex."<br/>Kink: tattoo<br/>A/N:  Orginally written for Rounds of Kink</p>
            </blockquote>





	Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> Notes: Implied slash

He couldn’t believe he hadn’t noticed it until the third time they had sex…well, after they had sex. It sat nestled at the base of Nathan’s spine, dark and mysterious. The idea that Nathan would allow someone to tattoo his body was just mind-blowing. Jack figured Nathan would consider body art as an imperfection on his perfect body.

_‘I guess it just goes to show how much I know.’_

Jack couldn’t understand how he had missed it before.

_‘Well, actually, I can.’_

ooOOoo

 

Their first encounter was one filled with blind passion. Nathan came over to the bunker to rail Jack about yet another attempt to undermine his work at GD. Jack’s only intentions that night was to drink a few beers, watch the baseball game that S.A.R.A.H. recorded for him and forget his day at GD. Listening to Nathan rant was nowhere on the list. He couldn’t honestly say what possessed him to try to shut Nathan up with a kiss.

Fortunately, Zoe was spending the night with Pilar because he would have been mortified for his daughter to even see what happened next. To Jack’s utter shock, Nathan returned the kiss. There was nothing romantic about it. Instead, it was hungry, angry and needy. Neither could explain how clothes became ripped off and cast aside, nor could they explain how they made it to the couch. The sex, however, would remain burned in their conscious forever. It was a fumbling, sloppy, glorious moment that ended with Jack sprawled limply under Nathan, sated and confused. They tried to pretend it was only a one-night stand; something that wouldn’t be mentioned and would never happen again. Their resolve lasted about two weeks.

Jack discovered dodging Nathan was easy when Nathan was also dodging him. No one thought it weird that they barely spoke because that was always how it was. Allison was often used as a buffer for conversations and as far as Jack was concerned, it could always be that way. If he never had to speak to Nathan directly and if he could bleach his brain to remove the memory of Nathan’s lips and Nathan’s hands and… life would be close to perfect.

ooOOoo

The day of the next encounter started horribly. Zoe wanted to go on a co-ed weekend camping trip. The school sponsored it and there was going to be adult supervision but all Jack heard was “co-ed” and he forbade her to go. It turned into a screaming match that had Jack threatening to use S.A.R.A.H. to lock Zoe in her room until she was thirty. Zoe stormed out, furious and Jack left right behind her, angry and on edge.

Only leaving the station to grab lunch at Café Diem, Jack stayed at his desk all day. Jo tried to pry into the reasons behind his attitude but soon she realized Jack was having a mood and left him to his own devices. The remainder of the day was remarkable quiet by Eureka standards and Jack was just hoping he could go home and maybe start over. He hated arguing with Zoe and after making a few phone calls to her teachers, he was grudgingly ready to allow her to go on the camping trip. As he and Jo were locking up for the evening, a call came down from GD. Jack sighed and sent Jo home. He figured things couldn’t get much worse so why not take the call?

It took Jack finally pulling his gun and shooting the out of control robot that was wrecking havoc on the lab for Nathan to directly address him for the first time in two weeks. To Nathan, Allison and Fargo’s surprise, Jack said nothing. Something inside Jack snapped that night and unbeknownst to him, it shone in his blue eyes. All he knew was that he was sick and tired of GD, sick of pompous scientists and suddenly he wanted nothing more than to go home, get roaring drunk and pretend this day never happened.

_‘You know, that’s the best idea I’ve had all day.’_

Several hours later, Nathan found Jack on his porch, sitting in the dark. As hard as he had tried, Nathan couldn’t erase that first encounter from his mind, either. Unlike Jack, however, his avoidance stemmed more from Jack’s reaction to the whole thing rather than the act itself. Nathan knew Jack considered himself a ‘man’s man’ and was probably appalled at the whole idea of them having sex with each other. Seeing Jack on his porch, made Nathan reconsider that idea.

“Carter.”

“Stark.”

Nathan stepped up on the porch. “Since you are sitting out here waiting for me, you should at least come in and have a drink.”

Jack said nothing but following him inside. He took a seat on the couch and watched Nathan as he moved around the house. The silence was broken only by the tinkle of ice in the glasses of bourbon Nathan prepared for himself and Jack. Sitting on the couch next to him, Nathan tried to wait Jack out but at this rate, they would have been sitting all night, drinking and staring at the glasses of liquor. It was already taking all of his concentration to focus on the question.

“Why are you here, Carter?”

Jack sighed and stared into deep emerald eyes. “You know, I’ve been asking myself the same question.”

Nathan looked into the clear blue eyes of Jack. It felt something akin to falling into the ocean. Before he could stop himself, Nathan sat his glass down and leaned into Jack. This time he wanted to be the one to give the kiss. He knew the first kiss from Jack was unintentional, just meant to shut him up. This time, he wanted to show Jack what the real deal felt like. Nathan was determined to figure him out once and for all.

Jack didn’t stop the kiss like he thought he would have. Instead, he plunged his tongue into the bourbon-tinged mouth, eager to taste more. At least, this time both men had more clarity and they actually made it to the bed. Jack once again found himself beneath Nathan, this time taking the pleasure that was freely given. He was willing to wait until morning to deal with the fallout.

ooOOoo

 

Standing with the other parents outside of high school, Jack felt a twinge of fear as he watched Zoe join Pilar and Lucas in the van that was taking them on the camping trip. He tried to put on a brave face for Zoe but what he really wanted to do was snatch her off the van and make good of his threat to lock her in her room until she was thirty. Instead, he numbly waved as the van took off. Sighing, Jack turned to leave and instead, bumped into Nathan. Surprised, the only thing he could do was stare.

It had been a week since that night at Nathan’s. This time, they didn’t avoid each other but neither made any extra effort to be near each other either. Instead, it appeared a truce had been called. Jack had to admit being with Nathan had been nice but he tried not to over think what this meant.

“I didn’t expect to see you hear, Stark.”

Nathan smiled and Jack felt his knees turn to jelly. “Well, I knew you were seeing Zoe off so I just wanted to see if you wanted company for dinner.”

Jack watched Nathan face for a moment, search for a hint of glibness or possible ulterior motive but finding none, finally relented.

“Sure. Let’s go see what Vincent has cooked up.”

Dinner turned out to be less stressful that Jack would have believed. Vincent, knowing how Jack felt about Zoe’s trip, prepared his favorite, a greasy cheeseburger and fries along with an ice-cold beer. Jack smiled in gratitude at the portly chef, knowing he was looking out for him. Nathan, dining on grilled salmon and caesar salad, sipped his wine and smiled at the ease it took to please Jack.

They talked about everything and nothing. Both men were surprised how relaxed they felt in each other’s company. When Jack offered a nightcap at the bunker, Nathan hesitated. He didn’t want Jack to think that being with him was just a lure to get him relaxed for sex but at the same time, he wasn’t ready to leave his company. He agreed, wondering where this night would lead.

They settled on the couch in the bunker, simply talking. S.A.R.A.H. surprised them both by dimming the lights and finding some nice jazz to listen to. Jack could only shake his head at his house. Noticing that Nathan didn’t seem to mind, soon Jack allowed himself to be distracted by the mellowness of Nathan’s voice and the way the low light reflected in his sparkling eyes. Suddenly, he realized that Nathan was staring back. Shaking his head, Jack was momentarily confused. Nathan simply chuckled.

“You didn’t hear a word I said.”

Jack was ready to protest but it died as soon as he opened his mouth. Conceding, he returned the chuckle.

“You’re right. I wasn’t. I got distracted.” His heart began to race as he suddenly wondered what exactly did Nathan say.

“At the risk of not being heard again, I asked you, where do we go from here?”

Jack felt his throat close and his face became hot. Only Nathan would bring the one thing he had been trying not to think about front and center.

Nathan took some satisfaction in watching Jack sputter and blush. At least, this let him know that he had been thinking about this thing that had been happening between them and not dismissing it. Deciding to forge ahead, Nathan continued.

“I’m not trying to pressure you into anything but we can’t keep going on pretending like these are accidents.”

Silence reigned for several minutes. Jack finally spoke.

“This is all new to me and after Abby, any type of relationship felt out of my reach. I don’t want to bungle this up, too”

Nathan had to smile. Insecurity on Jack was so sexy and it would be his job to make Jack feel better.

“This is new for me too. If it makes you feel better, we can bungle together.”

Jack laughed again. “I think I could live with that.”

The kiss between them this time was tender. For the first time, Jack took time to enjoy the build up. The kissing gave way to the shedding of clothes and then frantic need overtook both of them. Jack couldn’t remember being so treasured as he was in Nathan’s arms. Maybe this was all new but he was at least willing to give it a shot.

ooOOoo

 

The tattoo was a phoenix. It was beautiful and surrounded by flames. As his hand ghosted lightly over Nathan’s back, Jack was surprised by his voice. He had assumed Nathan to be sleep.

“It’s a reminder.”

Jack looked up into startling green eyes.

“A reminder of what?”

Nathan sighed. “Of no matter how much things around us crash and burn, we can always rise up and start anew.”

Smiling at the new twist his life had taken, Jack decided he could live with that motto.


End file.
